Fact Sheet: Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

A new international mechanism of appeal for victims of economic, social and cultural rights violations

On 5 May 2013, the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (OPICESCR)will enter into force, three months after Uruguay became the tenth state to ratify the treaty. Under the Protocol, victims of violations of economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR), such as the right to food, health,education, and housing, who are unable to seek relief for their claims within their own country, can seek redress at the international level by filing a complaint with the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.